U.S. to increase military presence in Syria

United States President Barack Obama announced Thursday that he would send an additional 250 military personnel to Syria to fight the Islamic State. The announcement came during a trip to Germany, Britain and the Middle East.

There are currently 50 military personnel on the ground. Obama said he hopes the significant increase of new military personnel will solidify progress made toward defeating the United States, according to The New York Times.

More: Military presence in Syria

 

Harriet Tubman to be put on $20 bill

Abolitionist Harriet Tubman will replace former U.S. President Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill, Secretary of the Treasury Jack Lew announced April 20. Jackson will move to the back of the $20 bill.

The backs of the $10 bill and $5 bill will also undergo changes, adding more women’s suffrage and civil rights leaders, according to Politico.

A woman was originally supposed to replace former Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton, but fans of the smash hit musical “Hamilton” and historians vocally opposed this change.

The new $20 bill will not appear until 2020, though, as the $10 bill is the next currency slated for redesign.

More: Numerous changes coming to U.S. currency

 

Legendary musician Prince dies at 57

Prince, a musician whose music defied genres, died in his home in Chanhassen, Minnesota, on Thursday. The cause of death has not yet been confirmed and is under investigation.

Prince’s career started in the late 1970s, according to The New York Times. He was a singer, songwriter and producer who could play numerous instruments. He produced much of his music on his own, playing every instrument and singing every vocal.

He was also a seven-time Grammy winner. Many of his songs — both his own and those he wrote for others — were wildly successful, including “1999” and “Little Red Corvette.”

More: Fans mourn death of Prince

 

Shaky alliance forms between Ted Cruz and John Kasich

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Ohio Gov. John Kasich, both Republican presidential candidates, announced Sunday that they would form an alliance in the remaining primaries.

The goal of the alliance is to prevent business mogul Donald Trump, the other major Republican candidate, from securing the number of delegates needed to clinch the Republican presidential nomination. The number of delegates required for the nomination is 1,237, and Trump had 845 before Tuesday’s primaries were decided.

One of the key states for this alliance and for anti-Trump forces is Indiana. If Cruz wins the winner-takes-most state, it will be much easier to prevent Trump from reaching 1,237, according to RealClearPolitics.

The partnership had already faltered by Monday, however, when Kasich said he would not suggest that voters should vote for Cruz rather than himself.

More: Indiana becomes major player in Republican primaries

 

Suicide rates in U.S. at a high

Suicide rates in the U.S. are at their highest level in 30 years, a federal data analysis found. The new information raised the nation’s overall suicide rate to 13 in 100,000 people, the highest since 1986.

Increases were seen in every age group except older adults. Rates for women and middle-aged people saw the most growth. Suicides among girls between age 10 and 14 tripled between 1999 and 2014, according to The New York Times.

The only groups that saw a decline in suicide rates were black men and people over age 75.

More: Suicide rates skyrocket

 

Virginia governor restores voting rights to felons

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe gave more than 200,000 released felons the right to vote in a historical executive order issued Friday. The move was one of the largest actions a state has ever made to instantly restore voting rights.

The order applies specifically to ex-cons who have finished their sentences and been released from supervised parole or probation, according to The Washington Post.

Republicans criticized the move, calling it an obvious favor to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, a friend of McAuliffe. Whether or not the move was political, it may help Clinton. She has received significant support from minorities, and one in four African-Americans in Virginia are ex-cons.

More: 200,000 ex-cons in Virginia given right to vote

 

Criminal charges made in Flint water crisis

Two employees of Flint, Michigan, and one employee of the state of Michigan were charged on April 20 with crimes connected to the Flint water crisis. Some of the charges are felonies that could carry up to five years in prison.

Prosecutors have charged the employees in part for covering up the lead contamination in the city’s water, which citizens continued to consume for months, according to The New York Times.

Some doubted any criminal charges would be made in the case. Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette said the charges are “only the beginning.”

More: Officials in Michigan face criminal charges

 

Stephen Curry out with injury

The Golden State Warriors announced Monday that basketball superstar Stephen Curry will be out for the next two weeks with a sprained right medial collateral ligament (MCL). MRIs showed the injury was the lowest level of sprain possible.

The injury occurred during Game 4 of the Warriors’ first-round series against the Houston Rockets. Curry slipped on a wet patch on the court and attempted to rejoin the game, but officially left the game early in the second half.

More: Curry out for two weeks

 

Apple’s growth drops after 13 years

After 13 years of continuous growth, revenue dropped during Apple’s second fiscal quarter. The tech giant made the announcement on Tuesday, saying total revenue fell 13 percent to $50.6 billion.

Sales of the iPhone fell as other companies continued to develop similar, lower-priced devices and China’s economy slowed down. Sales in China fell fastest, down 26 percent.

The company also announced it would start giving more money to its shareholders.

More: iPhone sales down

 

Appeals court overturns Brady suspension

A federal appeals court ruled Monday that New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady must serve the four-game suspension the National Football League handed him as penalty for the Deflategate scandal.

The decision reawakens the scandal, in which Brady was accused of compensating someone for slighting deflating the footballs used in the American Football Conference championship game in January 2015. His full role in the controversy was never fully settled.

If this decision holds, Brady will miss the first four games of the upcoming regular season. The Patriots are scheduled to play the Arizona Cardinals, Miami Dolphins, Houston Texans and Buffalo Bills for those games.

More: Tom Brady may still serve suspension

Published on April 27, 2016 at 1:19 am

Contact Delaney: dovanwey@syr.edu